


Punto Privo Di Visibilità

by ice_hot_13



Category: Assassin's Creed
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-06-22
Updated: 2012-06-22
Packaged: 2017-12-15 19:45:17
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,619
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/853346
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ice_hot_13/pseuds/ice_hot_13
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Some things, Leonardo just never saw coming. Loosely a sequel to Essere Qualcosa.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

 "Is that  _all?_ That is  _half_ of the shipment! Where the  _hell_ is the rest?!"

"Nothing else was ordered!"

"Che cazzo stai dicendo? This is half!"

The roaring voices from the docks floated through the open window of the studio, increasing in roaring volume. Leonardo didn't notice, humming as he poured over a sketch on the table. His gaze flickered up to the wooden figurine on the table to study it again, before returning to the sketch, fixing the curve of a line.

"What the hell am I supposed to do with  _eighty-six boxes?!"_

"What do I care?! Sell 'em! Burn 'em! Just take 'em!"

"That's like  _four times more_ than I'm supposed to unload!"

"Does that  _look_ like my problem?"

"Hey! Hey! Get back here and  _take_ these! You-"

Leonardo continued to hum as sunlight proceeded across the table. He could faintly hear the slosh of water against the canal stone, behind the sound of screaming from the men working at the docks.

 _"You!_ You are  _useless! Cazzo-_ go get that! Right now!"

"It's in the  _water!"_

"Then  _get it!"_

Leonardo didn't so much as look up when there was the sound of someone climbing through his window, in a reckless scramble to get inside. The intruded landed on the floor with a growl of frustration.

"I hate pickpocketing  _alert_ people" Ezio grumbled, "Dio mio, those men out there are vicious..." Footsteps, and Leonardo felt a hand at his shoulder. "Did you even notice?"

"Notice what?" Leonardo paused in his humming to ask, and Ezio laughed.

"You are the epitome of oblivious, caro mio." He kissed Leonardo on the back of his neck and wandered back to the window. "For the life of me, I will never understand why people leave maps in their pockets. It is too easy. And they are so  _obvious_ about where they keep their money..." Leonardo didn't have to turn to know that Ezio was picking out easy targets on the street, something the assassin barely realized he was doing. "What are you doing?"

"Nothing." The response was always, invariably, the same. Ezio went back to the table, looking over Leonardo's shoulder.

"Va bene. Always nothing. I was not aware that 'nothing' had become synonymous with 'a masterpiece.'"

"You are terribly behind." Leonardo set down his pen, turning to kiss Ezio's jaw. "It is nothing. I was bored."

"Of course. When I'm bored, I count cracks in the paint. And when you are bored, you create brilliant art. Predictable." He grinned, and Leonardo just laughed.

"Caro mio, when you're bored, you always come distract me."

"What can I say? You are far more interesting than paint." He tilted Leonardo's head back, pressed a kiss to his lips, "and everything else." His gaze shifted back to the sketch. "What are you doing?"

"It's a knight." Leonardo ran a fingertip over the delicate lines on the paper, "A French one."

"And... why a French knight?"

"Because" Leonardo said, as if the answer should have been obvious, "studying dock workers would have hardly been a challenge."

"Of course." Ezio had wandered into the kitchen, a note of amusement finding its way into his tone, "and this was... what, exactly?"

"Experimenting." He turned to see Ezio poking the destroyed mess the piece of papyrus had become.

"Uh... was this the... failed attempt?"

"No, no, that was the success. It turned to pulp when soaked in vinegar."

"And that is... good?"

"Of course. But I already knew it would. I wanted to find another liquid that could do so," he explained, as Ezio prodded the less-mangled pages, "I don't like the smell of vinegar. So I wanted something else to put inside the vial."

"Only you would try to improve perfection." Ezio smiled. "The vinegar serves its purpose perfectly." The vinegar he spoke of was part of the invention that allowed secretive documents to be sent without betrayal by messengers. If the contraption that held the document was forced open, the glass vial inside would break, destroying the contents. Ezio had marveled at the sheer brilliance since its creation, and Leonardo was unhappy with the strong smell of vinegar. He returned to the window, as the dock workers continued to curse at each other, boxes falling and breaking. "Are they always this loud?"

"No" Leonardo pushed back from the table, "only near Carnevale." He joined Ezio at the window, watching the dock workers fling boxes at each other and snarl insults, seeing only the curve of the wooden boxes, the frayed edges of the dock workers' sleeves, the liquid movement of the sails.

"Ah. That is soon?"

"Next week" Leonardo smiled brightly, "very soon!"

"Dio mio, te amo..." Ezio pulled him close abruptly, hugging him tight, drawing a surprised moan of delight from Leonardo. "I forgot it was next week..."

Leonardo bent over the sketch again, humming. Ezio's affection still took him by surprise, even after a month, but never ceased to delight him. Whereas he had failed to notice all the times Leonardo had hoped for a hug before, he seemed to have since realized that he had a touch Leonardo craved. The amazement was something Leonardo had never seen in Ezio before, the way Ezio seemed to constantly find something new to marvel at, and, more often than not, it seemed to be Leonardo himself. Leonardo had once asked him about it, and the answer had made him blush with an embarrassed delight.

"It's you that is so amazing, Leonardo" Ezio had said, "I keep finding more to fall in love with."

As Leonardo resumed working and humming, Ezio poked around the kitchen, adjusting the drawers that had fallen out of alignment. Upon checking the cabinets, he found that a previously empty space was now filled. Inside the cabinet were tiny birdcages, every single one empty. Leonardo smiled at the confused look on Ezio's face. Ezio came back over to him, wrapping his arms around Leonardo.

"Caro mio, where did all the bird cages come from?" he kissed along Leonardo's neck, thoroughly distracting Leonardo from answering. He moaned as Ezio's hands slipped under his shirt, warm against his skin.

"They-" Leonardo attempted to answer, quickly distracted as Ezio guided him away from the table, gently tugging him towards the stairs, "I don't remember..." Leonardo breathed, as Ezio, laughing, tilted his chin up, kissed him until he forgot everything else.

Leonardo had never known how liberating it felt, to forget the whole world.

x xxxxxxxx x

It wasn't supposed to cause problems, Leonardo knew that. The art collector had extended the invitation to the  _carnevale_ party merely because he counted Leonardo among his friends, and yet, as Leonardo left the man's house, he couldn't help the twinge of resentment.

Nothing would have made him happier than for Ezio to agree to attend with him, and he knew, he  _knew,_ that Ezio would never agree.

"Leonardo, you took just short of forever" Ezio's voice made him jump, and he turned, to see that Ezio had been beside him the entire time.

There were many reminders, that Ezio was still, always, an assassin. It was evident, in the way he instinctively slipped back into a blind spot as he followed along after Leonardo. It was second nature for him to follow outside the limits of peripheral vision; oftentimes, Leonardo never saw him coming.

"I didn't mean to... he talks a lot..." Leonardo said, as Ezio appeared beside him.

"Are you all right, amore mio?" Ezio questioned softly, and Leonardo ignored the worried gaze.

"I'm fine."

He wasn't an adept liar, but he was not a willing confessor, either.

X xxxxxxxxxxx X

Leonardo watched the tiny bird hop around inside the cage, making piping notes of a song. It had been the most lively at the market stall, hopping and whistling, and Leonardo hadn't been able to resist. He watched the bird's attempts at flying, as the workshop door opened and the sound of glass shattering could be heard.

"Mi dispiace, caro mio…" Ezio's voice, "I- oh, that's amazing…" Leonardo poked a finger through the wire cage sitting on the windowsill, as Ezio fiddled with the two-foot-tall model Leonardo had put together, based on the sketch he'd made a week previously. "I see your French knight was a success."

"Sì." Leonardo pried the door of the cage open, "vieni qui." The bird was happy to do as he asked, hopping out into the palm of his hand. "Bravo." He lifted his hand slightly, urging the bird to fly. After a moment of hopping, it tilted its head, and then flew away into the gathering darkness of cloud cover. Leonardo watched until he couldn't see the bird anymore, then turned away from the window.

"So that is where all the bird cages are from" Ezio was leaning against the table, that look on his face that Leonardo adored, when Ezio fell more in love.

"Sì. I hate seeing them in cages." He toyed with the door of the tiny bird cage, until Ezio's footsteps made him set it down and look up. Ezio tilted his chin up, those amber eyes meeting Leonardo's.

"Amore mio, is something wrong?"

"No. Nothing."

"Per favore? It worries me when you're not happy."

"It is nothing…" Leonardo traced a fingertip over the bracer on Ezio's right arm. "Really…" Ezio caught Leonardo's hand in his gloved one, gaze never moving from him.

"It also worries me when you try to lie about it."

"It should be nothing" Leonardo looked down, "a friend invited me to his carnevale celebration."

"Why is that bad?"

"That, in itself, is not." He kept his gaze on the ground, "but I would hardly want to go alone-"

"Leonardo, I-"

" And it would be more torment than anything else if you were to come as anything but as what you are to me" Leonardo finished firmly, making Ezio fall silent. "That is what is wrong. I want you to come with me. Would you?" The pained look on Ezio's face spoke for him before he could.

"No."

Leonardo had excepted disappointment, but not to such a crushing degree. He hadn't  _wanted_ it to mean so much to him, but it was hardly something he could control, and certainly nothing he could change. The lack of reciprocity had always been a fear of Leonardo's, and to stare it in the face when he least expected it was more than he could possibly handle. Leonardo drew away, ignoring Ezio's lingering touch and begins of protesting, walking away.

"Leonardo-" Ezio's voice was the last thing Leonardo heard before he closed the workshop door behind him. The clouds he had seen had begun to bring in a storm of rain, turning the streets dark and losing all other noise. Leonardo started off to his right, no clear destination in mind. Surely throwing Ezio out would have made more of a statement, he knew, but that was the last thing he wanted to do, because losing Ezio would have been losing everything.

All the same, Leonardo could never rid himself of the lingering feeling of distaste, at how someone could have such unintentional power over him. Ezio had not  _meant_ to hurt him, and yet, the pain was still  _there._ The distaste would have eased into acceptance had Leonardo only known whether he had the same significance.

He had no way of knowing, however, if he meant that much to Ezio.

Leonardo stopped in a sheltered alleyway, leaning back against the cold stones. He wanted to believe that Ezio could solve the problem; he had, after all, done so many times before. He had proved himself wonderful at soothing the fierce anger at other's artistic criticism, at erasing the frustration that plagued Leonardo when his inventions failed to work, and at making it seem like the world would soon right itself, if only given time and patience. But if it was Ezio himself causing the problem, Leonardo had to wonder, had to doubt, whether Ezio was as powerless as Leonardo himself was to solve anything.

Ezio had said no, and Leonardo had known he would, but no matter what logic said, it still  _hurt._ The self-conscious, lurking fear remained, that Leonardo loved him more than Ezio wanted. Evident in Ezio's instant response had been the dreaded lack of equal emotion, and Leonardo had never, never wanted to see that.

"I found you." While Leonardo was wet from the rain, Ezio was not, by some miraculous talent Leonardo couldn't find the voice to question. Ezio ran a hand through his hair, looking down at Leonardo, unreadable look on his face. "Oh… come here, caro mio…" It was too easy, to collapse in his arms and believe he could fix everything he always did. "I really am sorry, Leo" Ezio whispered, "it is my fault. Not yours. You have done nothing." Even as his words promised what he said, Leonardo couldn't dismiss the concern, couldn't. "I hate when I hurt you." He held Leonardo tight against him, and Leonardo could feel that even he was trembling, "Cazzo, Leonardo, what you do to me..." Leonardo sniffled, looking up at him, his  _you'll make it all better?_ look, shifting to a question. "No, I do not regret that. I love you and everything you do to me." Leonardo pressed a kiss to his lips.

"Even this?"

"Especially that." He offered a smile, and nudged Leonardo towards the entry to the alley. "Come, I will show you how to get home without getting wet." It only made sense, that Ezio knew even the awning-covered path. Leonardo held onto his hand, followed him through the rainy darkness.

Leonardo loved when Ezio didn't have any duties to perform by night, when he would curl up beside Leonardo in bed and still be there in the morning. Despite the added comfort of his lover's presence, Leonardo couldn't sleep. The steady beat of rain against the windows gave sound to the otherwise silent room, no moonlight able to filter through. Leonardo closed his eyes, breathed in the scent of spice. Ezio carded a hand through his hair, gentle touch soothing. In spite of his touch, his refusal continued to echo in Leonardo's mind, more painful with every time. Leonardo turned his face into Ezio's chest, silent tears wetting the fabric of his shirt, dashing hopes that Ezio wouldn't find out.

He knew Ezio hadn't meant it as an offense, knew it hurt Ezio to say it, but all the same, it  _hurt,_ made him wonder if he  _had_ done something wrong, if there was nothing he could do to change that, if it meant more than he even knew _._ The pain had come seemingly from nowhere, a blow he hadn't expected, creeping up on him from behind to deliver more pain than he could ever manage.

"Amore mio, please don't cry" Ezio whispered, "Per favore." Leonardo heard the hitch in his voice, "it breaks my heart." Ezio drew in a breath, not steady, "Even more so when it is my fault."

"Ezio..." There was nothing he could say, dissolved into tears, "Per favore. It would mean so much to me."

"My answer remains the same. No." Ezio held him tighter. "Mi dispiace, amore mio. I would do anything for you, if I only could."

He left no hope for Leonardo to have, just the reluctant acceptance that even for Ezio, there were impossibilities.

 

 


	2. Chapter 2

Leonardo woke to a gentle touch, a light kiss left to his cheek. "Wake up, amore mio" Ezio's deep murmur made Leonardo stir, to see Ezio crouched beside the bed.

"It's too early" Leonardo turned his face back into his pillow, shivering under the blankets as cold air flooded in through the newly opened window.

"It's never too early. Vieni." He caressed Leonardo's cheek, "Per favore." That apologetic sorrow, present for the past week- something hopeful seemed to be there, like a plea. Leonardo blamed the curiosity that brought about, for he was compelled to follow Ezio outside into the morning darkness.

"Where-"

"Secret." Ezio almost smiled, and Leonardo had the distinct impression that he was worried.

He would have said Ezio seemed scared, had he believed Ezio was able to feel such.

As hours flowed together and melted into a long span of time, Leonardo couldn't recognize the countryside they traveled through, as if Ezio had purposely chosen a path Leonardo didn't know.

Leonardo couldn't bring himself to ask after their destination, and he had so little an idea that speculation was pointless. Ezio had given him no clues, nothing to hint at anything. All week, Ezio had been distant, quiet, and terribly apologetic, and it was worse, when Leonardo saw his pain, that Ezio had himself as deeply as he had hurt Leonardo.

Perhaps worse, Leonardo had found himself wondering, and despite his own hurt, hoped it wasn't so. Despite everything he was feeling and anything that Ezio could do to him, he couldn't ever stand to see Ezio in pain.

By the late afternoon, they had arrived before a villa nestled amongst the hills. Ezio said nothing as an introduction, just slipped off his horse and offered a hand to help Leonardo down. Ezio straightened his clothing, attempting to appear decent, and looked to Leonardo. He didn't give the explanation Leonardo had been hoping for, merely offered a soft, "come on, caro mio" and held out his hand.

The gardens they passed through were beautiful. Leonardo's attention snagged on the fountain, shrouded in vines, even as Ezio gently pulled him along the path that snaked between the wild gardens.

"Ezio, have you ever  _seen_ so many roses? They're beautiful." He could feel the instinct that told him they would be a beautiful subject for a painting, the instinct he never could repress, the one he would feel shallow without, the one that whispered into his ear to point out where the beauty in life could be found.

"Sì" Ezio said quietly, hand squeezing his.

"And the ivy..."

"Come, Leo. There is more to see than merely the gardens" The amusement was taut, yanked thin by something like anxiety, lingering on the edges of Ezio's voice. As they arrived deeper in the gardens, Leonardo could hear voices and music, rising and flowing, and before long, the sandy path opened out into a courtyard, swirling with people. Men with shined boots, women in adorned dresses, leaving no doubt in Leonardo's mind as to the general social standing.

"Ezio, where  _are_ we?" Leonardo turned his gaze from the ivy that laced with itself alongside the path to the villa before them. Against the light of the sinking sun, guests' silhouettes swirled with shadows. Ezio led him into the crowd of people, easily weaving between them. Leonardo picked up on the countless greetings, people expressing delight at seeing Ezio again, wishing him well, his response standard and sounding sincere, even as Leonardo knew how sincerity truly tasted, knew this wasn't it. He let Ezio guide him around the outside of the house, until they emerged in the gardens. Ezio paused, looking around.

Leonardo saw a jolt of movement off to his right, and before he could so much as turn, someone had all-but tackled him in a hug, and despite the obviously friendly nature, he still felt like his heart was going to burst from the panic. Within a second, however, the man was on his back on the floor, Ezio standing over him, fists clenched. The man looked up at Ezio, and, Leonardo noted, there wasn't even a hint of fear in his dancing eyes. Rather, he burst out laughing, and it served to make Ezio growl and move his hand towards his hidden blade.

"Calmare, Ezio" the man snickered, getting to his feet. He couldn't have been older than them, with a smirk that made Ezio growl.  
"Don't touch him." Ezio scowled, and the man's response was to smirk again, and set a hand on Leonardo's shoulder. Ezio lunged forward, and the man grabbed him by the shoulders and dropped him to the ground. " _Lorenzo!"_ Ezio was growling, staggering back to his feet.

"Claudia!" Lorenzo was bellowing, "Come, meet Ezio's lover!"

Leonardo looked to Ezio, to see that he was tensed, a scarlet blush on his face. And saw the way Ezio stood straighter, pride in his silence, and Leonardo understood.

Understanding the  _entire_  situation was beyond him, but in that moment, he knew where they were and for what cause.

And he wondered, now,  _why._

xxxxxxxxxx

Ezio was far closer to full-fledged terror than he would admit. The idea of the party in Venezia- that had induced a dizzying fear, that to so obviously admit to being Leonardo's lover would bring about the worst fate in the world. Ezio had never been scared for himself; it was Leonardo, only him, and that was far more important than Ezio felt he himself was. He didn't want to risk that, but Leonardo's crushing disappointment had proved to Ezio what he hadn't seen.

Leonardo hadn't been scared; he'd known Ezio would be there with him.

And now, Ezio wished he had accepted that easier confession.

"Ezio!" Claudia's shriek made him turn, and she flung her arms around his neck, "Lorenzo said you were coming, but I didn't believe him."

"Claudia, you take your own cousin for a liar?" Lorenzo pretended to pout, and Claudia giggled. "Besides, there are far more important matters at hand." Lorenzo looked pointedly at Leonardo. Claudia whirled and shrieked, then threw her arms around Leonardo.  
"I  _knew_ it would be you, I just  _knew_ it!"  
"Claudia, how could you know that?" Ezio questioned, as Claudia finally released Leoanrdo.  
"You must be Ezio's sister" Leonardo was saying, smiling, as Claudia beamed and giggled.

"Si, si! And, oh, Ezio, how could I not know that?" The skirt of her blue dress swished around her as she spun to face him, "I am not  _stupido,_ I could  _see_ the way you looked when you talked about him." Ezio felt himself blush, caught Leonardo's eye over the top of Claudia's head. Leonardo had a look of astonishment on his face, a delighted sort of wonder, and Ezio couldn't regret what he was doing. Certainly, there was more to fear, but Leonardo's smile... Ezio could never say no, not to him. Even when he managed to, when his refusal had made Leonardo cry, that no had quickly turned to a  _yes, anything for you,_ even if Leonardo had yet to realize it.

"-you must come see, you'd love it!" Claudia was chattering, her voice always as excited as Ezio's was calm, taking Leonardo away towards the gardens. Ezio fought the urge to steal him back, just watched as his sister instantly found the subject Leonardo loved.

"Si, it would make such a beautiful painting- and you see the way the sunlight is, right now?" Leonardo's voice, as he and Claudia got farther away.

"Your little sister will talk his ear off" Lorenzo mused, shaking his head, "Now, care to explain why he seemed to have no clue we were here?" Ezio crossed his arms over his chest, scuffed the ground with the toe of his boot. "Ah, so you chose not to tell him."

Sometimes, Ezio hated how perceptive his cousin was.

"If the intent was to surprise him, it was obviously a success. He looked very happy. But knowing you, that probably wasn't your only reason for not telling him." Ezio cut a glare at Lorenzo, jaw tight.

"Maybe."

"Maybe!" Lorenzo grinned, "that's as good a confession as a 'yes, of course, Lorenzo, you are a genius for figuring it out!'"

"That, Lorenzo, would be a  _lie,_ not a confession."

"You weren't afraid of telling  _us,_ were you."

How Ezio hated it, when Lorenzo said such a statement- not a  _question,_ but a statement that Ezio could never deny.

"Why would I be? Claudia, apparently, always knew it would be Leonardo, and as for  _you-"_

"And you'd kill me if I hurt him," Lorenzo added, grin widening.

" _And,_ before that, I would tell Mario about you and his friend's daughter." The reminder made Lorenzo all-but pout.

"I need blackmail for you, Ezio."

"You also need a miracle, if that's what you want." Ezio saw Claudia and Leonardo returning, and Ezio knew that look. He  _loved_ it, the way Leonardo lit up with excitement when he saw some idea, already imagining how to create the beauty in a painting.

"It was as beautiful as you said it was, Ezio" Leonardo smiled, and Ezio tried to.

"There is still more to show you. May I have him back now, Claudia?"

"If you must" Claudia sighed, "it truly isn't fair, that my favorite of your acquaintances is so... so  _yours..."_ Claudia's pouting made Leonardo and Lorenzo laugh.

"I like him that way. He's as much mine as I am his, anyways." Ezio turned to go, slipping his hand into Leonardo's, "we will find you later."

"Si, si, and, Ezio-" Lorenzo added, "I believe I last saw her in the ballroom. She does know you are here." Ezio paled at that, didn't turn fast enough so as to hide it from Leonardo. Once they were a few steps away from Lorenzo and Claudia, Leonardo looked up at him.

"Her?"

Ezio could  _see_ the worries that flickered across Leonardo's face, surmising so many possibilities from Lorenzo's almost warning tone, from Ezio's own reaction of reluctance.

"My mother, caro mio." Ezio squeezed his hand, "I was hoping to tell her you have become my lover. If that is alright?" Despite the silent plea for Leonardo to balk, the way his eyes lit up dashed all hopes. Leonardo knew what that meant; Ezio hadn't truly expected otherwise.

"Si, si, of course." And then, then, Leonardo paused, "if  _you_ want."

Ezio had never understood how it was that Leonardo knew him so well. It came by surprise every time. The first, he'd been astounded at how Leonardo remembered just where to kiss and where to lick, to get him writhing and gasping. But again, he knew Leonardo's body as well, and the true surprise was in how well Leonardo knew what Ezio had thought himself unreadable. Ezio knew Leonardo, but reading him had become second nature, so deeply ingrained that he'd forgotten that, at one point, Leonardo had been something of a mystery to him. Now, he knew Leonardo as he knew himself, as if, sometime after the first kiss that tasted of tears, they had become one.

All the same, the realization that Leonardo knew him as well- it had appeared from nowhere, even though, truly, it had always been there, tucked away in the back of his mind, placed there by common sense. It unnerved him, that Leonardo knew him so well. It wasn't the inability to have secrets, it was the fear that Leonardo would perhaps see something terrible, see how truly undeserving Ezio was of him.

Yet, that Leonardo knew him so well... it explained why he had forgiven Ezio for his refusal a week prior. The realization brought a vulnerability that made Ezio shudder. Leonardo had seen how much it had hurt him to say no.

And should Leonardo ever decide that he wanted better, Ezio knew, he would see it coming, and that would hurt most of all.

Ezio wanted to avoid the moment for longer, but before he could figure out any decent way to do so, his mother was before him, smiling and greeting them, and there was no way to hide, not anymore.

"I'm so glad you've come home, Ezio. And with Leonardo!" It was like looking at Claudia, from the dark, expressive eyes and curved lips, and that made it easier. For a moment, Ezio was tempted to leave it at her first assumption, but Leonardo's bright smile made that a cruelty.

"Mother, Leonardo is no longer just a friend... he is more than that." He could see it on her face, thoughts working, a look that Claudia did not have, what with her instantaneous emotions.

"That is wonderful, Ezio," his mother said, giving him the smile she shared with his sister, before she looked to Leonardo. "I'm very happy for the both of you."

"Thank you, Signora," Leonardo said, the way he had that made anyone love him, "Your daughter just showed me your rose garden. I've never seen anything so beautiful."

"I will love having a son who appreciates beauty and gardens," she smiled, and Ezio knew then, knew that the rest of the world could not matter, not when Leonardo had found so natural a place in his family.

The setting sun could be seen from the ballroom window. In the veiled light of the late afternoon that faded towards dusk, the hills surrounding the villa were bathed in gold and shadows, and that was the sight Ezio had always remembered the most. It had been a long time, since he had seen this shade of golden shadow. He and Leonardo were tucked away by the window, swaying slowly to music that floated over from across the room.

"Ezio," Leonardo said softly, voice in his ear, "thank you. This... this means the world to me, that you would bring me to your.. your home."

"Leonardo" Ezio whispered, nose-to-nose with him, "home?" He ducked his head, kissing Leonardo's neck. "My home is in Venezia now. With you." The words stole Leonardo's breath, filled with a thrill that left no space for anything else, "this... my childhood home, yes. That is where we are. Do you like it?" He felt the curve of Leonardo's smile.

"Si, si, but...amore mio... you didn't want to... in Venezia.."

"I didn't," Ezio said softly, "but... you mean too much to me, to let something like fear hurt you." He smiled, stepping away and taking Leonardo's hand, "come." They wove through the crowd of people, voices and music everywhere, past the staircase and out through a back door.

"Leaving your own family's party?" Leonardo chuckled, following, "what would everyone think."

"Some things are more important, caro mio," Ezio led him to the wall that trailed ivy, looking up to the balcony above. "Up there." He saw the way Leonardo looked at the trellis and paled.

"You've lost your mind," he said, shaking his head, "do I look like an assassin to you? I do not climb walls." Ezio just laughed, and pushed aside the ivy to reveal the rope ladder. "Better."

Once Ezio helped Leonardo over the balcony railings, he pulled Leonardo to him, kissing him as he fumbled with the door handle behind them. The doors finally opened and gave way, and Ezio backed Leonardo into the room, where Leonardo broke for breath, looking around.

"Yours?"

"Si." The room appeared untouched since he had last left it. It still fascinated Ezio, that when he closed his eyes and imagined home, it was Leonardo's bedroom in Venezia that came to mind. He eased Leonardo back onto the bed, kissing deeper. Leonardo's fingers lit upon the sensitive spot at his hip, making Ezio moan. "I hope this makes up for missing the Carnevale festival in Venezia."

"Ezio..." Leonardo breathed, eyes bright, and Ezio didn't need any more words to know. He barely noticed as Leonardo's nimble fingers undid buttons and clasps, until warm hands slipped over bare skin.

Ezio knew he wasn't as adept as Leonardo, at recognizing beauty in the world. He knew his gaze skimmed over what Leonardo honed in on, already analyzing escape routes and calculating distances as Leonardo would stand motionless, in awe of the slant of light that made dust dance and sparkle. The way Leonardo looked, though, when he arched and Ezio heard his own name on those lips, scream thrown to the air to twist and dance, Ezio saw. _This,_ he always thought, leaning down to kiss Leonardo,  _this is beauty._

He slipped under the covers next to Leonardo, reveling in that purring sound from Leonardo as he drew up close. Ezio ghosted his fingers along Leonardo's jaw, as Leonardo slipped an arm around him, nearly drifting off to sleep. "I love you, amore mio," Ezio whispered, twirling a curl around his finger, "I do." Leonardo smiled, snuggled in closer against him.

"Ti amo, Ezio," he murmured, "always."

"You deserve better. You... you're amazing... I'm certainly not good enough for you, I'm nothing near perfect enough..."

"Better? There is no better" Leonardo kissed him gently, "I see how much you love me. Just like I love you." He curled back up against Ezio, "Si, caro mio, you are not perfect. Neither am I. But we are both imperfect in a way that we fit together perfectly."

 _Perfectly,_ Leonardo's words echoed in Ezio's mind long after Leonardo fell asleep, and Ezio wondered how it was that he'd never realized that he didn't have to be perfect, and that Leonardo  _wasn't_ perfect.

 _He isn't,_ Ezio thought looking down at him. He wasn't; he was dreamy and distant, with a sporadic attention span, and enough faults to become countless.

And yet, Ezio had never noticed.

_He's not perfect, and I'm not, either, but together, together... we are._

Maybe he'd known all along, couldn't truly realize until Leonardo showed him, like Leonardo was the only way he could find that whole world, the one with them both, together where it didn't matter how perfect or imperfect the rest of the world was, so long as they were together. Ezio had never known perfection, before Leonardo.  _I'm imperfect, and you're imperfect too, and together…_

Together, they were one.

Together, they were perfect.

Ezio kissed Leonardo gently and settled down to sleep, as moonlight lit up the room with a silvery, perfect light neither lover saw.

 


End file.
